Battle of Aldy Charrish

Who Fought

History & Significance

The Battle of Aldy Charrish (also known as the Battle of Auldicharish, Aldicharrish, Aldecharwis, Alt a'Charrais, Alt Charrais, Alt na Charrais) was a Scottish clan battle that took place on 11 July 1487. The Clan Mackay and possibly the Clan Sutherland defeated the Clan Ross and their allies in the Scottish Highlands, probably on the south side of Strathoykel.

The second half of the 15th century had seen a series of raids by the Mackays of Strathnaver on the Rosses of Balnagowan. According to the Blackcastle MS (which was written by Alexander Mackay of Blackcastle who had access to the Mackay chief's family charters and papers) the Rosses had made "a predatory incursion" into the territory of the Mackays. Sir Robert Gordon, however, says that the Mackays "often molested with incursions and invasions" the lands of the Rosses. According to historian Angus Mackay, the evidence is ample that the Mackays managed to recover some of the lands in Ross-shire that had belonged to their relatives and enemies, Neil Neilson Mackay, his brother Morgan Neilson Mackay, and Neil and Morgan's father-in-law Murray of Cubin, all three of whom had been defeated and killed by the Mackays of Strathnaver at the Battle of Drumnacoub in 1433. The evidence is also ample that the Rosses managed to secure some of these lands lying in the parishes of Edderton and Kincardine in Ross-shire. So it appears that the feud between the Mackays and the Rosses arose out of a scramble for disputed lands. Finally the Rosses, led by Alexander Ross of Balnagowan, gathered their forces to attack the invaders who were led by Angus Roy Mackay of Strathnaver and who they defeated and killed at the Battle of Tarbat, some time in the 1480s. Angus Roy Mackay's son John Mackay returned in the late 1480s to attack the Rosses in revenge for the death of his father.

According to 17th-century historian Sir Robert Gordon, who was a younger son of Alexander Gordon, 12th Earl of Sutherland, the Clan Sutherland joined the side of the Clan Mackay at this battle. However, 19th-century historian Angus Mackay disputes the Sutherland's presence at the battle stating that it would be unlikely that John Sutherland, 8th Earl of Sutherland at the time would have assisted against the Rosses as he was married to a daughter of the Ross chief of Balnagowan, and also that the feudal superiority of the Sutherlands over the Mackays "nowhere existed save in his own fertile imagination".

Contemporary evidence for the battle is found in The Calendar of Fearn which is a manuscript of the Clan Ross. It dates the conflict to 11 July 1487 and gives eleven names of those killed at Aldecharwis.

The ground they fought on

The site of Battle of Aldy Charrish lies on Morar Group, bedrock that formed in the Neoproterozoic. The rock here is psammite.

Frequently Asked Questions

Scheduled Monuments near Battle of Aldy Charrish

Langwell,fort and dun 500m WSW of

Scheduled monument · Iron Age · ~5.1 mi

Langwell Fort and Dun is an Iron Age fortified settlement situated 500 metres west-south-west of Langwell in Ross-shire, northern Scotland. The monument comprises two distinct defensive structures typical of this period: a fort and a dun, representing different scales of fortification that may ha…

Invershin Farm,standing stone 220m ENE of

Scheduled monument · Bronze Age · ~5.6 mi

Invershin Farm standing stone is a Bronze Age monument located in Sutherland, in the far north of Scotland. The stone stands approximately 220 metres east-north-east of Invershin Farm, occupying ground underlain by Morar Group psammite, a metamorphic sandstone formed during the Neoproterozoic era…

Invershin Station,chambered cairn 400m N of

Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~5.9 mi

Invershin Station is a Neolithic chambered cairn located in Sutherland, Scottish Highlands, some 400 metres north of Invershin Station. The monument stands on bedrock of the Morar Group, a psammitic sequence formed during the Neoproterozoic period, which underlies much of this Highland landscape.…

Achinduich,hut circle 900m S of,Lairg

Scheduled monument · ~5.9 mi

Achinduich hut circle is a prehistoric domestic structure located 900 metres south of Lairg in Sutherland, Scottish Highlands. The monument sits on psammite bedrock of the Morar Group, Neoproterozoic in age, which forms the underlying geology of this upland region. The hut circle represents a for…

Achany,chambered cairn 250m NE of

Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~6 mi

Achany is a Neolithic chambered cairn situated 250 metres north-east of the settlement of Achany in Sutherland, in the far north of Scotland. The monument stands on bedrock composed of psammite from the Morar Group, a metamorphic rock formation dating to the Neoproterozoic era. This ancient geolo…

Achany, cairn 890m NW of

Scheduled monument · ~6.1 mi

Achany cairn is a Bronze Age funerary monument situated on moorland in Sutherland, in the far north of Scotland. The cairn lies approximately 890 metres north-west of Achany, positioned on bedrock formed from an unnamed felsic igneous intrusion of Early Devonian age. This ancient igneous foundati…

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• Battle of Aldy Charrish · Wikidata
• Battle_of_Aldy_Charrish · Wikipedia